Social Work Commons^™

Income Vs. Race Effects In Refund Anticipation Loan Utilization, Richard J. Smith

Social Work Faculty Publications

This purpose of this paper is to illustrate how data can target outreach for social and economic justice by testing for an association between refund anticipation loan (RAL) utilization and a Zip code’s racial and income characteristics. RALs are rapid tax refunds marketed by tax preparers.

Circumstances And Suggestions Of Youth Who Run From Out-Of-Home Care, Angelique Day, Joanne Riebschleger

Social Work Faculty Publications

Th is study examined the preceding circumstances of youth that ran from out-of-home care. Youth off ered suggestions for preventing future running episodes. Data was drawn from 111 case records of three county courts in southeastern Lower Michigan. Data were also drawn from four focus groups of youth living in out-of-home care (n=24). Circumstances that preceded youth running included female gender, African- American ethnicity, more restrictive placements, prior running episodes, and separations from siblings and children. Focus group youth expressed concerns about placement disruptions, rules, chores, diff erential treatment, loss of control, safety, and especially, feeling that “no one cares …

Diagnostic Classifications And Resource Utilization Of Decedents Served By The Department Of Veterans Affairs, Sonia A. Duffy, Laurel Copeland, Faith Hopp, Robert J. Zalenski

Social Work Faculty Publications

Background: Given the volume and cost of inpatient care during the last year of life, there is a critical need to identify patterns of dying as a means of planning end-of-life care services, especially for the growing number of older persons who receive services from the Veterans Health Administration (VHA).

Methods: A retrospective computerized record review was conducted of 20,933 VHA patients who died as inpatients between October 1, 2001 and September 30, 2002. Diagnoses were aggregated into one of five classification patterns of death and analyzed in terms of health care resource utilization (mean number of inpatient days and …

How Does Michigan Fare In The Fight To Improve Outcomes For Youth Aging Out Of Foster Care? A Response From The State And One Of Its Communities, Angelique Day, Deboraha Watson

Social Work Faculty Publications

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, one-half-million children are in foster care at any given time, some of whom are over the age of 16. Every year, typically at the age of 18, approximately 20,000 of these children will age out of the foster care system. Many of these youths fi nd themselves making an abrupt transition to adulthood and independence with little or no assistance from their caregivers, biological families, or the child welfare system. Unlike their same-age peers in the general population, they have no safety net if they fail to succeed at navigating …